Neelie Kroes, EU Antitrust CommissionerFor the complete report in MarketWatch Dow Jones click on this link
Four EU lawmakers critical of EU's handling of Microsoft - "were they "massaged" by Microsoft lobbyists?
Brussels: Four European parliamentarians Thursday criticized European regulators for their handing of an antitrust investigation into Microsoft Corp. (MSFT), saying that it could result in delays of the release of the company's software in Europe. In their letter addressed to European Antitrust Commissioner Neelie Kroes, the four members of the European Parliament - three from the U.K. and one from Poland - complained that the regulators' "ongoing pursuit of Microsoft has lead to 'uncertainty about the legal principles that govern product design issues for future releases of Microsoft products in Europe.'"
European Commission Spokesman Jonathan Todd rejected the lawmakers' assertions, saying, "There is no reason why Microsoft cannot market Vista in a way that is fully compliant with competition regulations." According to the letter, Microsoft cites European regulators as a "risk factor" for doing business in Europe in its filings with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. "It is alarming that one of the world's most successful technology companies considers the European Commission's attitude a 'risk factor' that might delay European companies' access to future Microsoft products such as Windows Vista," they explain. EU-Digest: There are 732 European MEPs in the EU Parliament. The four opposing parliamentary members, obviously "massaged" by Microsoft lobbyists probably will not carry too much weight in changing the outcome of the decision by the Commissioner. The EU Parliamentary system, contrary to that of the US Congress, is not ruled and controlled by lobbyists and "big business". Let us hope it stays that way. Kudos to Neelie Kroes, EU Commissioner for Competition.
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